What happened to the growth spurt of nineteenth-century adolescents? An essay on the history of a scientific omission.
It is common knowledge that puberty is characterized, among other phenomena, by a striking growth spurt. An exploration of the medical literature from previous centuries shows, however, that this feature of adolescence has attracted surprisingly little attention. Although the pubertal growth spurt was known to eighteenth-century physicians, it was neglected for about a century. The influential Belgian scientist Quetelet demonstrated a remarkable scotoma towards the phenomenon. It was only after his death in 1874 that the relationship between puberty and growth spurt became a scientifically established and recognized fact.
Vandereycken
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Department of Psychology, University of Leuven, Belgium.
van Deth
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D000293:Adolescent; D001530:Belgium; D001827:Body Height; D049672:History, 19th Century; D006801:Humans; D011627:Puberty